## [UBC Applied Science projects receive $3M in research infrastructure investment](/news/2022/ubc-applied-science-projects-receive-3m-in-research-infrastructure-investment) Posted September 22, 2022 /sites/default/files/announcement-images/2022-09/UBC-Campus-Martha-Piper.jpg Twenty Applied Science-led research projects receive support from BCKDF and CFI JELF. Nineteen UBC Applied Science research projects to improve people’s health and safety have been awarded over $2.9 million in research infrastructure support through the [BC Knowledge Development Fund (BCKDF)](https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/technology-innovation/bckdf). The projects – led by professors in the [School of Nursing](https://nursing.ubc.ca/), [chemical and biological engineering](https://chbe.ubc.ca/), [materials engineering](https://mtrl.ubc.ca/), [mechanical engineering](https://mech.ubc.ca/), the [School of Biomedical Engineering](https://www.bme.ubc.ca/), and UBC Okanagan [School of Engineering](https://engineering.ok.ubc.ca/) – tackle issues ranging from women’s cancers and preterm infant health to senior care, 3D printing and next-generation solar cells. “We are fortunate to have world-class talent at many of our post-secondary institutions,” said Anne Kang, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training in the [provincial release](https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022JERI0059-001382). “By providing funding for new infrastructure through the BC Knowledge Development Fund, our researchers are able to acquire new state-of-the-art equipment that will help people and industry be future ready.” Established in 1998, the BCKDF supports the development of vital research infrastructure, like labs and equipment, at public post-secondary institutions, research hospitals and affiliated non-profit agencies in British Columbia. The support helps to attract researchers, skilled technicians and research users, as well as foster innovation and collaborations with industry. This year, [78 UBC-led projects were awarded a total of $20 million](https://research.ubc.ca/province-invests-research-infrastructure-innovation-post-secondary-institutions) through the Fund. The 19 UBC Applied Science-affiliated projects and their leads are: - **RNA Enhancement and Clinical Translation (REACT) Platform** Anna Blakney (Biomedical Engineering / Michael Smith Laboratories) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **CRC in Engineered Immune Tolerance** Megan Levings (Biomedical Engineering / Surgery / BC Children's Hospital) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Control and instrumentation infrastructure for high-speed bearingless motors research** Minkyun Noh (Mechanical Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Cell Competition Analysis Platform** Nika Shakiba (Biomedical Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Controlling the reaction environment in sustainable catalytic processes to produce fuels, chemicals, and power** David Upham (Chemical and Biological Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $159,821 - **AI-driven platform for translating precision medicine discoveries in women’s cancers** Ali Bashashati (Biomedical Engineering / Pathology and Laboratory Medicine) BCKDF contribution: $325,000 - **Developing Breath as a Diagnostic Paradigm for Human Health** Jane Hill (Biomedical Engineering / Chemical and Biological Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $240,000 - **Healthy Brain Development in Preterm Infants** Manon Ranger (Nursing / BC Children's Hospital) BCKDF contribution: $123,640 - **Probing the interaction between representations and behaviour underlying navigation** Manu Sasidharan Madhav (Biomedical Engineering / Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Advanced Bioproducts from Canadian Forests** Johan Foster (Chemical and Biological Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $400,000 - **CIHR Partnership Grant CRC in Senior Care** Lillian Hung (Nursing) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Infrastructure for design, characterization and structural integrity analysis of advanced out-of-autoclave composites** Yasmine Abdin (Materials Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $122,974 - **Simulation-based modelling of the industrial, large-scale fibre reinforced polymer composite 3D printing** Sergey Kravchenko (Materials Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $122,353 - **Wearable systems to characterize sensorimotor response to impulsive loads** Calvin Kuo (Biomedical Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Mining and Verifying Specification of Complex Software Systems** Apurva Narayan (UBCO School of Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $91,850 - **Development of Crack-Resistant High Strength Aluminium Alloys for Laser Metal Deposition** Michael Benoit (UBCO School of Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Toward Autonomy and Resilience of Control Systems Using an Industry 4.0 Platform** Ahmad Al-Dabbagh (UBCO School of Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Ultrafast laser system for terahertz development in food applications** Christopher Collier (UBCO School of Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $125,000 - **Microfabrication for next-generation thin film solar cells** Ian Foulds (UBCO School of Engineering) BCKDF contribution: $109,101 The [Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund](https://www.innovation.ca/apply-manage-awards/funding-opportunities/john-r-evans-leaders-fund) (CFI JELF) also awarded [$4.6 million to 20 UBC projects](https://research.ubc.ca/twenty-ubc-led-projects-awarded-46m-infrastructure-funding-through-cfi-jelf-competition), including six led by Applied Science. This includes five of the BCKDF-funded projects led by Yasmine Abdin, Chris Collier, Ian Foulds, Sergey Kravchenko, and Calvin Kuo above. The sixth project awarded by CFI JELF is: - **Infrastructure for AI-integrated Point of Care Ultrasound Imaging for Decentralized Healthcare** Ilker Hacihaliloglu (School of Biomedical Engineering / Radiology) - [Awards](/topics/awards "Awards") - [Research Excellence](/topics/research-excellence "Research Excellence")